An unemployed mother couldn't afford to buy the picture of her daughter sitting in his lap

Dec 7, 2012 11:32 GMT  ·  By

Being grumpy didn't help one Santa Claus in a Maine shopping mall, as customers complained and he was fired from his job.

Daily Mail details that the South Portland Santa will be replaced for not letting a six-year-old girl sit on his lap, and being dubbed rude and grumpy.

Jessica Mailhiot and her daughter Chantel traveled to the mall just so that the girl would have the chance to sit on Santa's lap.

When they arrived, the unemployed mother of two mentioned that she had no intention of buying a photo of the meeting with Santa. Annoyed, he refused to give her the time of day afterwards.

“He just put his hand on his lap so I couldn't go on,” Chantel says.

“He didn't even ask if she was good or anything like that, he just snubbed her,” her mother adds.

The incident brought upon a lot of negative feedback from customers online, some vowing never to step foot in the mall again.

“I understand money issues and all, but don't be cold and heartless to innocent children,” one Facebook user comments.

“I took my daughter to see him and she was terrified and he was the rudest man I have ever met... didn't smile... not even a ho ho ho,” another user complains.

Mall reps responded with an apology, and told clients they would replace the employee with a jollier Santa.

“Thank you to those who have voiced concerns regarding our Santa photography policy.

“Visiting Santa at The Maine Mall is free - photo purchases are NOT required and we have been reacting to customer complaints by taking some pretty serious steps already, the results of which you will see within the upcoming days.

“We realize time with Santa Claus is a holiday tradition many of our shoppers look forward to year after year - and so do we,” the statement reads.